Canadian Corey Conners continues to ride wave of success at Masters

Corey Conners lines up a putt on the 18th green during the first round of the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club on April 11, 2019 in Augusta, Georgia. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

By Scott Michaux, Special to Postmedia Network

AUGUSTA, Ga. – The biggest problem Corey Conners might have this week is pulling a muscle by smiling too much.

Still riding the improbable adrenaline high from his last-in as a Monday qualifier in Texas to first-off in the Masters, Conners found himself lost for words early Thursday morning before he ever found himself on the Masters leaderboard.

After watching Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player hit the honorary tee shots immediately before his grouping took the first tee, Conners suddenly found his hand in the mitt of the greatest champion of all time.

“He just congratulated me on the win, that felt pretty special,” said the hopelessly grinning Conners of his Nicklaus encounter. “Never thought in a million years that Jack Nicklaus would know who I am and it just felt pretty cool. I was able to stand on the back of the tee and watch he and Mr. Player tee off and really appreciate what they have done for the game of golf and it was a really cool experience to be part of. I just tried to soak it in and really enjoy it.”

Conners is still coming to terms with being here at all.

Ten days ago, he was the 196th-ranked player in the world facing a playoff in a Monday qualifier just to get into the Valero Texas Open. By Sunday, he was making 10 birdies to win his first PGA Tour event by one shot and book the 87th and final spot into the Masters. The odds – even for someone with a T3 and runner-up already on tour this season – were off the charts.

“I’m a math and stats guy and it was very unlikely that I was going to be here, I’ll say that, especially having to Monday qualify last week,” he said. “So, yeah, could have said almost certain that I wouldn’t be here, but it’s worked out really well and I’m really happy.”

Whatever magic the Listowel, Ont. native has going did not rub off on the six-time green jacket winner’s palm. He was coasting along with a birdie and two bogeys through 12 holes before catching fire. A two-putt birdie on 13 got him back to level par and he started throwing darts.

He stuck an 8-iron from 152 yards to three feet on 14 for birdie and then drew a majestic 6-iron from 202 yards to five feet on the par-5 15th and knocked in the downhill slider for eagle that vaulted him into sole possession of the lead at 3-under.

“That was the shot of the day for me, I would say,” Conners said of his eagle approach, which earned him his first piece of Masters crystal.

Not even a 3-putt from 46 feet on the bottom tier at 18 could wipe the smile from Conners’ face, as he walked off with the early clubhouse leader at 2-under 70. It was a significant improvement over the 80 he shot in his first round as an amateur in the 2015 Masters.

“Quite a lot better,” he said. “I had a great day out there, it was beautiful, it was fun to be first off this morning, felt pretty special to be out there on the tee and I am really happy with how I played.”

Mike Weir, the 2003 Masters champion, wasn’t surprised, having seen Conners shoot 80-69 in the two rounds they played together in 2015.

“Even back then I was very impressed with his game,” Weir said of Conners. “He drove the ball well and got on the wrong side of the hole a couple times and that’s what can happen around here. You can shoot 80 and actually not play that poorly. It can get away from you quickly here. I’ve always been impressed with his game and he’s continued to get better and work on his weaknesses and enhance his strengths. He’s really doing some great things.”

Conners’ wife, Mallory, gained notoriety with her expressive reactions during his dramatic final round in San Antonio, and her heart was still racing Thursday.

“It’s been a crazy whirlwind,” she said, “and we haven’t had time to process it. It doesn’t seem real.”

Conners received a warm welcome on the first tee Thursday.

“I think there’s way more Canadians or people pretending to be Canadians out there than I would have guessed,” he said.

Now he hopes to have a moment to settle down and sleep in before his 11:15 a.m. tee time for the second round as he sits firmly in contention on a tightly packed Masters leaderboard.

“It’s been wild, definitely unexpected but I’m playing some good golf and really excited to be here and honoured to be playing in the Masters and just trying to keep riding the good play,” he said. “Everything’s still high, I’m just having a lot of positive emotions. Didn’t really sleep much the beginning of the week, I felt energized with positive things that have happened. This is a great place to be and I’m just really enjoying it.”

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